Issues
by msjgatsby
Summary: Mike and Paige are having issues. Out takes from Kings Castle Episode.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: Quick out takes from Kings Castle. Takes place after Johnny goes to talk to Paige about the bounce house, and before Mike goes to jail.

* * *

"Knock Knock."

Paige needs to get the lock on her door fixed. People just keep barging into her room today.

"Dammit! These 2-22's are never going to get filed if people keep interrupting me!" Paige slams her hands down on her desk angrily. Most of her frustration was due to the fact that she actually wasn't getting any work done anyways. She'd been sitting there staring blankly at the pages in front of her thinking about Mike. She wasn't expecting him to be back in the house so soon. She thought she'd have time to process this whole messed up situation before she had to face him again.

The fact that it's Briggs standing in her doorway just makes her stomach sink with guilt. She hates lying to Paul. He was like her family. He'd always looked out for Paige and had her back. He took care of everyone in the house. Paul was Graceland. Mike was… Paige didn't know anymore.

Briggs walks into her room with his normal cool confidence, leaning over her shoulder to glance at her paperwork. "Now we both know you could fill these out in your sleep. See? These aren't even due for another two weeks."

Briggs is always full of casual compliments, but Paige blushes a little under the praise none the less. He grins down at her and places a hand on her shoulder giving her a friendly squeeze. "You know if you're not careful, everyone's going to see right through this 'hot party girl persona' and see that at heart you're just a gold-star hungry perfectionist. You could give Warren a run for his money."

The mention of Mike's name brings the pang of guilt back to Paige's stomach.

"Hey Paul." She looks guiltily back at the papers in front of her rather than at him. "Look, I don't mean to be rude. I'm just in the zone right now, and really should get back to work. But if you want company, I know Johnny's looking for help planning Jake's birthday."

"Ah yes, the big birthday bash." Briggs sighs dismissively. There's a reason he came in here, and he's going to stay on task. Trying to steer the conversation back in the direction he wants, Briggs teases Paige, "You know I'm beginning to think all you women in this house are workaholics. Are you trying to make us men look bad?"

"Yeah, well we gotta pick up the slack for you boys. With Johnny's head filled with strippers, Jakes mourning his birthday, and your surfing addiction..." Paige doesn't mention Mike. After what she learned about him in the hospital, she's not sure if he really counts as part of the house anymore. She's not sure he ever really was.

She feels so betrayed. She didn't know who Mike was anymore. She used to think he was this incredibly perfect man. Smart, handsome, hardworking, and most importantly she believed he was a good man. She just saw a goodness about him, a kindness and morality that she'd never encountered before. But it wasn't real. Everything he'd ever told her had been a lie. She didn't know who he was anymore.

Briggs notices Paige's lack of mention of Mike, but doesn't think anything of it other than it's a convenient segway into the real reason he came in here. Trying to sound casual he says, "Yeah, well at least Mike's still working."

"Psshhhh… you have no idea." Paige grumbles under her breath before she can catch herself.

"So you've heard about what Mike's doing?" Briggs asks, surprised that news had traveled so quickly to Paige about Mike's new plan for prison espionage.

"What's Mike doing?" Paige asks, guardedly. She dares to hope Mike did the right thing and came clean to Briggs. It would keep her out of the middle. She doesn't like all these secrets at Graceland, and she feels her loyalties torn between Mike and Briggs. If Briggs knew, maybe she could forgive Mike. Maybe. Someday.

"Well Charlie and Mike have decided Mike needs to go back undercover with Bello to take another shot at finding Oden."

"But Bello's already in prison. I'm sure the attorneys can work out a deal for his confession." Paige is confused by this sudden turn in the conversation. Briggs can't possibly be suggesting what she thinks he is. That would be suicide.

"Well Bello's not talking, but Charlie thinks he might give it up so Mike can cut a deal."

"You can't be serious. He can barely stand and he's going to put himself in prison?" Paige's face pales.

"Yeah, I don't think it's a good idea, but you know Charlie. She can be convincing."

"Well then tell him not to go!" Paige says in a panic, standing up so quickly from her desk that the paperwork goes flying, but she doesn't care.

"I tried, but Warren won't listen to me." Briggs says, shaking his head. Giving her a sideways glance he says nonchalantly, "Maybe, you could persuade him though."

"Me?" Paige asked suspiciously.

"C'mon Paige, cut the shit. I know you," Briggs rolls his eyes, "And I know that you know the kid's got a little thing for you. He'd do anything you asked. Tell him not to go. He'll listen to you."

"Yeah, well we're not really talking these days."

"Everything ok with you two?"

"Is there really so little going on in this house that you all have nothing better to do then to speculate about every little interaction..." Paige growls in frustration. First Johnny, now Briggs? When did the house become so gossipy?

"We're just having issues. Could everyone drop it?" Paige says defensively, turning away from Briggs. She hates lying to everyone. She hates Mike for putting her in this position. He wishes he had never confided in her.

"Well whatever issues you two have, I'd settle them real quick, because if Mike goes into that prison in his condition, there's a good chance he's never coming out." Briggs says, before walking out of the room leaving Paige alone with that haunting thought.

Briggs knows how to play people, which is why he's not the least bit surprised when, two minutes after he leaves, he hears Paige walk out of her room and down the hall to Mike's door.


	2. Chapter 2

There is no knock. There never is with Paige. The door is just pushed open, and suddenly Paige's small frame is somehow filling Mike's doorway.

"Hey." Mike greets her with a blush. His injury has him feeling pathetic, and she's caught him attempting to put on his jacket with one arm. The same jacket he's been fighting with for the past ten minutes. The jacket seems to be winning. Mike hates showing weakness, and Paige witnessing is even worse.

Right now, Mike doesn't know where he stands with Paige. With the way she reacted in the hospital, he was sure he was going to come home to find his stuff on the curb and five very pissed and former roommates using him for target practice. He was relieved to find that apparently Paige hadn't said a word, and yet her cool dismissal this morning told him she wasn't exactly on his side either.

Now she's finally here, and Mike can explain. He'd been hoping he'd get to talk to her. He'd been camped out on the living room couch all morning, hoping she'd come downstairs. Now that he was leaving for prison, he wasn't sure he'd get a chance.

Every movement hurts, but Mike gives up on the jacket and puts all his focus into limping across the room to her. Keeping his voice hushed, in case other roommates are listening in, he says quietly, "I'm glad you're here. I didn't want to interrupt you earlier, since it looked like you were working, but I just wanted to say, thank you. For not telling anyone. I know you're not comfortable with it, but you have no idea how good it feels just knowing-"

Mike doesn't get a chance to finish explaining before she explodes, shoving him roughly in the chest. "Are you fucking serious Mike?!"

"Ow! Careful my side!" Mike stumbles backwards in pain, steadying himself on the bed. He groans from between gritted teeth as he grasps his side. "Ok, so you're obviously still pissed…"

"You're really doing this? What is wrong with you?!" She screams again, pacing around his room. She's so worked up, Mike worries she might throttle him any minute. He does not have the strength for this right now. If he'd been in better health, the light shove wouldn't have even fazed him, but in his current state he's winded.

"Keep your voice down. The others might hear." Mike groans feebly.

He should have known she wouldn't be ok with this. Paige was one of the most loyal people he knew. He loved that about her. Despite her willingness to play dirty, she had her own moral code she wouldn't break. Some things were sacred to her, and her friendships were one of them. That was why he'd told her his secret. He trusted her. That, and he was delirious from a lack of blood and an abundance of morphine.

He should have known, that same loyal streak he loved would be what made this so hard for her. He'd betrayed not only Briggs, but her, and she may never forgive him. He just hoped her keeping his secret meant she was going to give him a chance to explain.

"Let them hear!" Paige yells even louder. "You're an idiot! You've been out of the hospital for five minutes, against doctor's orders, and now you want to go to jail?!"

Mike stares up at her shocked as he slowly realizes this fight is not about him spying on Briggs. This is a completely new fight. Somehow, she's already heard his plan to go under in prison. This is about him putting himself in danger, and that has her upset. Mike takes it as a good sign. Sure, she's screaming at him now, and his side aches from the stress, but in her own unintentional way, Mike realizes this is her showing she still cares about him, despite everything he's done.

"Charlie thinks that Bello might give up Odin to cut a deal for me." Mike tries to explain, trying to stand up again to face her. Somehow the thought that she still cares is making him feel like he can stand. He needs to appeal to her rational DEA side. If he can just touch her, he can calm her down. Her rapid pacing in front of him is making him dizzy.

"For God's sake, STAY DOWN!" Before he can stand, Paige has a hand on his shoulder and shoves him back down roughly, "Get it through your thick head. You're injured. You need to stay in bed!"

She's growling as she resumes pacing, but this time Mike stays seated, watching her mind working, and trying to predict what she's thinking. Finally, she takes a few deep breaths and calms herself down enough to turn to him and ask, "Have you ever even been in a prison Mike? There's a whole different gang mentality in there. It's like caged up animals."

"I know. I took an entire course on prison sociology. I know what I'm getting into." Mike says weakly. He had done his homework. He wasn't near as stupid as Paige seemed to think he was. He knew this was a dangerous assignment, but he had to see it through. He would have thought Paige of all people would have understood his need to finish this. He had gotten Bello, but Charlie was right. Odin was still out there.

"A class? Christ Mike…" She seems speechless at his naivety. "Mike, you're not only injured, you're pretty. The slightest sign of weakness will..."

"You think I'm pretty?" Mike sits up a little straighter, calling her out.

"Really? That's what you want to focus on right now?" She stares at him incredulously. "Listen to me! If you're dumb enough to do this, you will be either dead or someone's bitch by the time they do lights out!"

"The FBI won't let that happen-"

"The FBI can't touch you in there! Any sign of preferential treatment or accommodation and they'll know you're a fed, if Bello hasn't figured it out already."

"Paige it'll be fine! My cover is solid. Bello saw me take a knife for him."

"Yes Mike, you got stabbed! You're injured. You shouldn't even be here. You should be in the hospital. Mike, why are you doing this?"

Mike doesn't know if her question is, why he's going to prison, or why he's spying on Briggs, but the answer's the same either way.

"Because I'm a FBI agent. This is my job." He glares up at her in pain. Her eyes stare down at him, her expression softening. Possibly she recognizes the mirror of determination and dedication to the job that she has herself. Maybe it's just how pathetic he looks. Either way, she grows silent, staring at him with wide green eyes. Now that their fight seems momentarily paused, Mike becomes more aware of the pain in his side.

"Ow…" Mike groans, holding his ribs. "So your plan was what? To kill me before I ever get to prison?"

"Not kill you, drama queen. Just maim you to the point you can't go." Paige admits, allowing him the attempt to momentarily lighten the mood. "Believe me, if we were in the hospital right now, and there was a doctor standing by, I'd claw those stitches out with my bare hands to keep you from going."

"Good thing I left then." Mike teases, though he doesn't doubt her sincerity. "With these nails you could do it too. Mmmmph..." Mike has to bite his cheek to keep from screaming out from the pain in his side. She's already seen him cry at the hospital. He'd like to keep some of his dignity in front of the girl.

"Ugh. Lie back. Let me see." Paige sits down on his bed next to him, focusing in on his injury. She didn't mean to hurt him this badly, but if he thought what she was doing was rough, he wouldn't last an hour behind bars.

"I'll be ok… I just need to. ughh…" Mike tries to stand up, but his side lurches in pain.

"Mike. Lie back." She instructs softly.

Mike lays back on the bed nervously, as her hands come to the hem of his shirt. Earlier he had been proud showing off his battle scar to Briggs and Charlie, but now in his room alone with Paige, this feels intimate. He's lying back on the bed, looking up at her, making no move to either assist, or prevent her hands from lifting his shirt. His heart starts racing in his chest as she leans in, and he can feel the pulsing beat all the way down his left side. She gently drags his shirt upwards, and he looks up at the ceiling, trying to ignore the sudden change in the atmosphere.

She's just a coworker... Just a coworker… Mike repeats the phrase again and again in his head. It's the same mantra he's had on repeat since he first saw her in the bar. Sure, Mike may have a little crush, but who wouldn't? Sometimes he almost thought she felt something too, but he might just be imagining it. Either way it didn't matter, because they were both professionals and she was just a coworker...

Her fingers are gentle, and she carefully pulls back the bandage to examine his scar. She looks at him clinically, her long fingernails trace up the muscles of his abdomen, being careful to avoid the injury itself, and his stomach spasms under her touch. The jerk of his gut sends a shooting pain through his side. She pulls back her hand away quickly, in fear she hurt him, but he grabs her hand to keep him from leaving as he tries to control the pain and compose himself.

"Sorry." He gasps. "I'm ok… I'm fine. Don't go."

Paige looks down at him, shocked by the response of his spasm under her fingers. Any other time, she would find it endearing that he was so ticklish, but she can't allow that sort of thing sway her. She has to remain hard to Mike, he's a liar and a rat. She can't allow herself to get closer to him. She's gotten to close already. If she hadn't she would have gone straight to Briggs the second he told her he was a rat. She would be driving him to prison right now, because he's right, it's his job. Instead she's trying to calculate how much time handcuffing him to the bed would delay his incarceration.

She stares down at his stomach. The cut is so deep. Its an ugly scar running up his entire side. She doesn't even know how he survived it. She can't look away from the angry red gash. She thinks back to how weak he looked in that hospital bed. She was so worried he was never going to wake up, and that flash of blue as he forced his eyes open, was the most beautiful color in the world. When he focused his eyes on her, was the happiest feeling she'd ever felt, quickly followed by the worst, when he told her it was all a lie…

Paige shakes her head, bringing her attention back to his wound. "Mike, all the stitches are fine, but there's still a lot of fresh blood here. You take one wrong hit..."

"Torah Torah Torah." He groans.

"What?" She asks genuinely confused, and Mike realizes she missed the earlier conversation. He doesn't have the energy to explain it to her. He lies there on his back, trying to breath through the pain, focusing his thoughts into where he tightly held her hand in his.

With a grunt, he tightens his grip on her hand and uses it to help pull himself back up to a seated position. Once he's uncomfortably upright again, he still doesn't let go of her hand in his lap. A moment of silence passes between the two before Mike finally asks...

"Paige… why are you here?"

"Briggs thinks that if I ask you not to do this, it might stop you." Paige admits, her voice clearly not believing that would make a difference.

"Briggs is a smart man…" Mike sighs as he looks down at her delicate hand in his, his fingertips grazing over her wrist as he plays with the jangling bracelets distractedly, pondering this response.

Of course Briggs was somehow involved. For some reason Mike couldn't tell, Briggs really did not want Mike to go to that prison. Whether that was out of concern for Mike's health or something else, he couldn't tell, but it was fairly ballsy of Briggs to enlist Paige to do his dirty work for him.

Yet Mike had to admit, it was ingenious. Because if she asked him not to go, really asked him, could he actually say no to her? He hadn't been able to say no to Paige yet. Not in a way that stuck anyways. He would always say no at first; No to football, no to dating Abby, no to breaking up with Abby, no to sharing his secret, but in the end he always gave in to her. If she truly asked him to not go, what would he do?

Her surprised eyes come up to meet his. He stares at her expectantly, weighing her reaction. This is Paige's chance. He's basically telling her that all she has to do is ask. Ask him anything. If she asks him to stay he will, even if he doesn't want to.

"Mike…" She looks at him, and for a moment Mike worries she actually might ask, but she just lowers her eyes, speechless.

"Look, why are you here Paige?" Mike's voice is groggy. The pain medication he's on doesn't seem to be helping with the pain, just making everything harder.

"I told you. Briggs-"

"Yeah, I don't care about Briggs right now." Mike cuts her off quickly. "I'm asking you. If it was you, could you let Odin go? Knowing this is my last chance to get this guy, could you just walk away?"

"You don't know that. You'll have other chances."

"Not like this. If Briggs is right, and I find Odin, he can lead me to Jangles too. C'mon, Paige. The guy gutted me." Mike grabbed her hand and pressed it to his stomach, ignoring the pain it brought. "Now, I want the bastard. Paige, I'm so close. You know me, and you know as well as I do, I have to do this."

Paige didn't know what to do. Everything he was saying made sense to her, it sounded exactly like the Mike she knew. Hell, he sounded like her. She didn't know if he was just playing her though. He'd been lying to her the entire time and now the man she thought she knew so well, was a stranger. She couldn't separate the lies from the truth. He seemed so earnest, and she wanted to believe him, but her normally dead on instincts had completely missed his treachery. How could she trust him again after that? More disturbing, how could she trust her own judgment?

"I don't know who you are anymore, Mike." She admits, her voice breaking.

"Yes, you do. You know me better than anyone, Paige." Mike moves closer to her on the bed, staring intently into her eyes. He has no doubt what he's saying is true, even if she doesn't believe him. "And that's why you know I have to do this."

"Look, I'm going to be, ok. I promise." Mike says in a comforting voice, but it was a promise he might not be able to keep, and they both knew it.

"Don't do that. Don't lie to me." Paige wants to believe him. She wants to believe everything he says, but she's so unsure.

"I am coming back." Mike says firmly. He's hurt by the fact that he's lost her trust. He wishes somehow she could know how hard it was keeping all this from her. "Paige, you know all my secrets now. I won't lie to you again."

"Yes, you will. Everybody lies at Graceland." Paige says sadly. She picks up his discarded jacket from the bed and gently helps him slide it on, avoiding his eyes as she does. Turning quickly, she leaves him and hopes it's not the last time she ever sees him.


	3. Chapter 3

The sound of the slamming door echos through the house as Johnny gives up on his hopeless roommates and admits defeat for the night.

Alone in her room, Paige thinks about Johnny's words and how the whole house is falling apart. Decisively, she folds up the drawing Mike had given her and places it in the nightstand next to her bed. Peaking out into the hall, she sees that each roommate has their door shut. The house seems eerily quiet with everyone separated into their own worlds, trapped alone with their own troubles.

Paige walks swiftly down the empty hall from her room to Mike's door. She cracks the door open and slips inside, turning to silently close the door behind her. Even with her stealthy entrance, Mike hears her and comes out of his bathroom on high alert, ready to face the intruder. The room is dark. The only light coming from the bathroom glowing behind Mike, but he can still recognize her from just the outline of her shadow and the scent of her perfume.

Paige stares at him illuminated from behind, his pale skin making him look like a ghost. It's a miracle he's still in this world. For a moment they just stand across the room, staring at each other. Mike is surprised to see her here, and he can't read her face in the dark. His body tenses up, preparing for yet another fight.

Her eyes are wet with unshed tears, and he barely hears the nearly inaudible whisper of "I'm sorry," before she closes the distance between them, and throws her arms around his neck, pulling him close into a hug.

Mike doesn't even mind the pain that shoots through him with the force of her small frame slamming into his. His arms wrap tightly around her waist and he buries his head in her hair. He's thankful that for the first time since he arrived at Graceland he doesn't feel completely alone.

He holds her close as she cries softly into his shoulder.

"Shhh… it's ok. I'm sorry too." He brings one hand up to stroke her hair in a soothing motion. His side is in agony from the pressure of her pressed against him, but he ignores the pain and silently hopes he doesn't get blood on her delicate white and gray striped shirt.

"You almost died." She pulls away slightly from him, not ready to let him go yet. She was so ashamed for how she reacted in the hospital. "When I got the call saying you'd been stabbed, I thought I'd lost you."

"I thought I'd lost you. I was worried you would never speak to me again… Paige, I hated lying to you. I'm so sorry. You were right. Everything you said, was right… I'm a rat. I don't know how to fix this." Now that they've both apologized, it seems like they're now competing in who was more wrong. Paige and Mike were ever like two sides of the same coin.

"But I shouldn't have left you there like that. I should have stayed with you. Mike, what if you had died and those were the last-"

"Hey, I'm fine. Ok? I'm not going anywhere. See?" He grabs one of her hands from around his neck bringing it down to his chest where he presses it firmly so she can feel his heartbeat. The move was supposed to be comforting, but instead it just seems to draw attention to the fact that he's shirtless and they're touching. His heart starts to pound harder under her fingertips.

His lips are suddenly dry, and he swallows nervously, aware that very suddenly he has broken the spell. He's not sure how to get out of this awkward moment though, and the time drags on like it's frozen. Her fingertips curl against his chest, and her eyes lower to stare at the smooth expanse of skin in front of her.

"Do you wax? That is unnaturally smooth." She laughs, trying to break the tension with a joke and pulls away her hand to wipe away the few tears that escaped.

Paige is not normally a cryer, but the past few days have been an emotional rollercoaster for her. First there was Bobby Moi, her fighting with Mike, then Mike getting stabbed, finding out he was a rat, him almost dying again in jail, then all the new information about Briggs. . . It was too much for Paige to handle and the dam just had to break sometime.

Mike recognizes her trying to break the tension with her jokes, but he's looking down at her intensely. He hates to see her cry, even briefly, but the tears make her green eyes sparkle even brighter. He wants to tell her how much her being here means to him, but he can't find the words. The only thing Mike can think is that kissing her right now would sum up how he's feeling perfectly.

"Honestly, where do you find time to do such immaculate manscaping?" Paige is still nervously joking, and he loses his nerve. She's barely speaking to him again. He doesn't want to screw up this fragile moment of peace between them. Regardless of her humor, They are both quickly realizing that Mike is shirtless, his arms are still around her waist, and his bed is about two feet away.

"I should put on a shirt…" Mike pulls awkwardly away from her. The wound on his side makes clothing uncomfortable, but he cares more about her comfort than his own, at the moment.

"So, what are you going to do? About Briggs?" She asks, wrapping her arms protectively around her stomach now that he's pulled away.

"Whatever I have to." Mike says grimly, "Look I don't think Briggs did all those things, but I have to do my job."

"Are you going to tell the FBI I know?"

"I'm not planning on it. " Mike locates a soft t-shirt in his dresser. It's old and ratty, but it's probably going to irritate his injury the least.

"So do I know everything then?" She asks, and the tone in her voice makes Mike suspicious.

"More than anyone else." Mike says guardedly, carefully sliding his arms into the shirt and sliding it on. Paige watches his reverse strip show with unblinking eyes, smiling warmly at him.

"Can I finally find out what was really going on that day you cut yourself?" She asks when his head emerges through the collar.

"I'll tell you anything you want to know. How much time do you have?" Mike asks, remembering when Paige had confronted him, and how he'd had no choice but to remain silent. He'd wanted to tell her then, and now he finally could. He's filled with a sudden lightness, not having to worry about secrets for once was very freeing.

"I'm not going anywhere." Paige said, walking over and sitting cross- legged on Mike's bed as instructing him, "Start from the beginning."

"The beginning. Wow. It feels so long ago. Well I guess, I was at home, I was actually researching apartments in DC, when I got the call, that I'd been assigned to California." Mike sits down on the bed across from her, finding himself actually excited to finally share all he'd been going through these last few months.

"Did you know your assignment was to investigate Briggs?"

"No. I had no idea what was going on, I thought maybe I had screwed up and was being punished."

"You're right, Graceland is like Guantanamo. All this sand and sunshine."

"I like it here more than I thought I would." Mike admits, hoping he didn't offend her. "You want to hear the story or not?"

"Yes please." She stops with her teasing to listen like a small child.

"So I got here, having no idea what I was getting into. Briggs wasn't at all what I suspected and I felt so lost. I was just getting settled when I found out."

"Did you know? When I first met you, did you know then?"

"Yes." Mike won't lie to her again. "The morning of the day I met you, I met with my 'psychiatrist.' He was my commanding officer in the Briggs investigation."

"Well, I guess in a way it is comforting to know. I mean, your interest in Briggs was a little intense. Bordering on obsession really. Johnny and I were wagering which side you played for."

"Wait, was that why you set me up with Abby?! To see if I was straight?!"

"Oh what are you so pouty about, you got laid. I got fifty bucks. Win-win." Paige rolls her eyes.

"So why didn't you just try to seduce me yourself?" Mike tries to act casual about the question, but it's something he's wondered ever since Paige threw him at night at the bar, Mike was clearly trying to hit on Paige, and she had shut him down.

"Well that would have meant for the sake of fairness that Johnny would have to have tried too."

"Oh he did." Mike joked, making Paige laugh out loud. "Consistently. It was horrifying."

"That cheater!" Paige giggles, "So not fair."

Mike gives her a little shrug, and a smirk and says, "Hey, you could have tried that strategy too…"

"Wouldn't have worked." Paige says. Mike stares at her, biting his cheek to keep from telling her that if she had shown any type of interest, it would have worked. She smiles at him and says confidently, "Gay guy's love me."

"I'm sure they do…" Mike says with a little smile as Paige launches back into drilling him about the Briggs investigation.


	4. Chapter 4

Authors Note: I have some explaining to do.

Recently things have been crazy at work, and I haven't had as much time to write as I would like. I thought maybe things would settle down and I could get back to writing soon but...

I've been unexpectedly cast in two different musicals that run back to back. Add that to the season starting for my charity football league (and y'know, that pesky career thing) it means every night and weekend I am now busy until July.

I will try my best to wrap up all my writing projects quickly. Thanks for your patience!

This chapter takes place right after the last one. It is is right after Johnny's speech and right before Mike is sitting on the steps when Bello calls him.

* * *

Mike is not sure when he fell asleep, but the sun coming through his window wakes him. His roommates must have dismantled his alarm clock while he was in the hospital.

Opening his eyes, the first sight he sees is Paige asleep on the bed across from him about a foot away. He pulls him arm under his pillow to prop up his head while he watches her sleep. Her blonde hair is spread out across the pillow, her dark eye makeup is smudged, her lips are parted and her eyelids twitch lightly in REM. Mike wonders what she's dreaming about.

He remembers now. The two of them had stayed up most of the night whispering about Briggs, retelling stories in a new light now that Paige knew all the facts. It felt so good to finally be able to be honest with someone, and Mike had to admit, he was happy that someone was Paige.

While it had started talking about Briggs, somewhere in the night the conversation had naturally morphed into something more intimate. Mike had ended up telling Paige all about his childhood growing up, his grandfather, and his time at Quantico. He'd learned new things about her as well; her favorite band, how she'd wrecked her first car and how much Graceland meant to her. As the night wore on and she let down her guard more and more, Mike realized that these stories were ones that she didn't often tell. He had somehow earned the privilege of hearing these, of seeing the secret side of Paige few got to see.

He had never seen Paige so open and relaxed. It was like they were in their own little island on his bed, whispering, laughing and sharing stories.

She had gotten cold at some point last night, and he'd given her his favorite Quantico sweatshirt to where. She'd fallen asleep cocooned in it, her long tan legs stretching out from underneath the worn grey material. Mike had to bite his lip to keep from grinning like an idiot at the look of her lying peacefully in his bed in his favorite sweatshirt, her chest softly moving up and down with each breath. He briefly wondered if once all this was over if she would consider coming to DC with him. He then shook his head realizing that the thought was absolutely crazy.

Though last night had been one of the most emotionally intense night's of Mike's life, no romance actually occurred. At only one point Mike had seriously thought about kissing her. It had occurred to him sometime around when he was laying on his back with his head in her lap, her fingers running absently through his hair. From that angle he could stare up at the way her lips moved when she talked about her childhood french bulldog. Something about the way her lips curved into a smile, made him almost reach up and pull her down into a kiss. He thought better of it though. Some moments in time are too perfect to ruin with sex.

They must have fallen asleep at some point, each on top of the covers, on their own side of the bed. Mike stares at the sleeping girl across from him, his heart skipping in his chest, realizing this is the first time he's had a woman in his bed at Graceland. It's something he figured would never happen.

Somehow everything that seemed so hopeless yesterday looked different in the light of the new day. With Paige on his side now, Mike feels like he can do anything. Unfortunately even the joy of waking up next to her can't overcome his physical limitations. As happy as Mike would be to lay here and watch her sleep all day, he's feeling the pain in his side and he's left his medication in the kitchen.

Mike carefully rises from the bed, trying not to disturb the sleeping girl across from him. He limps to the door and looks back at her still curled up in his bed. He'll come back in a minute and bring her breakfast in bed. Well coffee and toast at least. He's not much of a cook.

Mike quietly slips out of the room, not wanting to disturb her. As he walked out into the hall, distracted by all the giddy feeling in his chest, he jumps about a foot in the air when he runs straight into Johnny.

Mike tries to wipe the guilty look off his face, but it was too late. Johnny looks past him through the open door way into the room and sees Paige asleep on Mike's bed. Mike's eyes followed Johnny's. He's horrified to see that, from this angle, it looks like Paige is wearing nothing but his sweatshirt.

Mike quickly closes the door behind him, protecting Paige as best he can, and glares at Johnny who has broken into a huge triumphant grin.

"No!" Mike tries to deny the situation immediately, but it is too late and the damage is done.

"I knew it!" Johnny proclaims with a huge grin.

"John, listen to me. It's not- Nothing happened." Mike stutters. The pain in his side shooting through his body. He's not on the top of his game right now. He's not ready to deal with this.

"I knew it!" Johnny simply repeated gleefully. "You both said nothing was going on!"

"Shhh!" Mike grabs Johnny's arm dragging him away from the doorway. The last thing he wanted right now was for the entire house to wake up and find Paige in his bed. "Johnny listen, you can't- You can't tell anyone. It's not…"

"I knew you two were acting weird! How long man? Yo, is that why you and Abby broke up? Because of you and Paige?"

"No, it wasn't that! Well, Paige was a part of it... but no!" Mike is flustered, and his mind is blank.

"Come on Levi! You've got to tell me. You and Paige? This is huge!" Johnny begs.

"No, it is the opposite of huge. It is tiny. It is nothing, because nothing happened. Seriously, can we please just drop it?" Mike is beginning to get annoyed. His side hurts, all the happiness he felt just a few moments ago has evaporated as he's realizing how much more complicated having Paige involved might make things. "Look, we just talked and she just fell asleep."

"Talked about what?" Johnny asks, and Mike realizes this is a whole different problem.

"Nothing, just stuff." Mike scuffs his foot on the floor.

"The kind of stuff people talk about in bed all night?" Johnny asks skeptically.

"Look. I know how that sounds." Mike runs a hand through his hair wishing he could find a way to end this conversation. He considers ripping the stitches out just to put an end to this, but knowing Johnny that wouldn't work.

"Uh huh…"

"Johnny, please man. Can we not talk about this? It's early. My side hurts, and I didn't sleep last night..." Johnny laughs knowingly and Mike doesn't like what that laugh implies. "NO!"

Johnny just shakes his head, clearly not be

"Look man, I didn't sleep with her."

"Yeah that would be a lot more convincing if you didn't just skip out of your room whistling. You got laid." Johnny challenges. "She's in your bed, you two have been acting weird around each other. I see what's going on Levi!"

"Look, it's really early on. I don't want to jinx it." Mike finally gives in, and let's Johnny believe whatever he wants to believe. He has to do some damage control. Mike feels so unchivalrous doing so, like he's throwing Paige under the bus to protect his secret. "Listen, you can't tell anyone."

"Fine, but just tell me how long have you been..." Johnny wiggles his eyebrows, "Y'know. Tapping that?"

"Dammit Johnny! Do you want everyone in this house to punch you? It's none of your damn business! Why don't you grow up? Get a life of your own rather than latching onto everyone else's." Mike loses his temper and screams at Johnny. As soon as the words are out of his mouth he regrets it. Johnny looks like a kicked puppy dog.

"That's how you want it? You got what you wanted so you don't need the rest of us? Fine." Johnny whispers angrily at him. "I thought we were all friends, but this house is just breaking apart. There's too many damn secrets!"

"Johnny, listen..."

"No. Go play with Paige in your little playhouse for two." Johnny says harshly to Mike, "But since everyone in this house is choosing sides, let me just make one thing clear. When you mess up, no one's going to be on yours. That girl is family to me, and you banging her doesn't trump that."

All thoughts of bringing Paige breakfast in bed, all those happy feeling he felt waking in his room seeing her there, are gone. His screaming match with Johnny this morning has put him back in his worried mood.

Mike sits on the stares, staring at the wreckage in front of him, and thought about what the hell he was doing. Johnny was right. This house was falling apart. Now he was lying to Johnny not only about Briggs, but about Paige. The lies were just piling up and someone was going to get hurt. He couldn't let that person be Paige, and yet here he was, selfishly dragging her down with him.

He needed to figure out what her knowing meant for his mission. He can't say he regrets telling her.

He had let her into his world completely last night, something he knew he wasn't supposed to do. He had probably broken the law by confiding in her, and worse, had dragged her into his espionage. This was getting out of control.

He needed to end this as quickly as knew he had to wrap up his assignment with Briggs quickly now, but if he did that then the FBI would send him back to DC. They'd really have no choice once the other roommates found out what he'd done. Paige may have accepted him, but that didn't mean the other four would. Thinking of her sleeping face, he wasn't ready to leave yet. He wondered if there was anyway he could come out of this with no one else finding out he'd been planted in the house, but knew it wasn't likely.

Mike wants to go find her, but he's afraid last night was just a spell and in the morning light she will be mad at him again. He feels guilty for starting another lie with Johnny about her in his room. He failed with the Odin investigation. He can't fail with this too. Bello will never give up the information now, so he has to use all his focus into finding out what is happening with Briggs.

Mike is staring out into the living room, the medicine in the kitchen forgotten. His side aches with pain but he deserves it. Plus the pain killers dull his senses, and he needs to focus all his energy into fixing this. He can't screw up again. Not now.

Mike doesn't know how long he sits on those steps, until the vibrating in his pocket pulls him from his thoughts just enough for him to answer his phone.


End file.
